The media plays really of import functions in the lives of people in every state. Through the media, we are able to cognize the things go oning around us and by that, we are able to accommodate to life alterations efficaciously. Mass media therefore can be argued to be really polar in the development and prosperity of every state. There is nevertheless a complicated relationship between mass media and political relations. Many established democracies in Europe have had their Medias still kicking approximately political intervention and the footing of this survey is to seek to happen out if so media and authorities control can be parallel. This survey will affect a expression at different states in comparing to Thailand to seek to happen a form.
Thailand being the lone state in Southeast Asia that did non hold colonial regulation makes it to be considered a shaving one of the most libertarian medias. Thailand has a entire population of 67.8 million people with its capital metropolis being Bangkok. Currently Thailand has 538 wireless Stationss ( AM and FM ) which include wireless Thailand, MCOT wireless web, among others. Television Stationss are besides in plentifulness and they include Thai Television 3, BBTV channel 7, to call but a few. Newspapers and cyberspace besides form portion of beginnings of media information in Thailand. With all these signifiers of mass media, our survey will seek to happen out if so the conveyance of information by these beginnings is free of any authorities intervention or if these beginnings of information have been compromised by the province therefore doing Thailand media less libertarian. In comparing with other states, the survey will besides seek to happen out if libertarian media theoretical account still exists or if most states have turned their media systems to autocratic ( Leyland, 2010 ) .
Overview of the media system
Media freedom has been the capable affair of many states over the past few old ages. Journalists have continued to be arrested and prosecuted. Media houses have been shut down, media measures drafted and passed by authoritiess but the threat continues. The magnitude of authorities control depends largely on the size or population of a media house is following and non deficiency of democracy as many would wish to set it. Many non-democratic states have freer Medias as compared to democratic states. The authorities may therefore take to command popular signifiers of media in order to acquire the backup of the society
In post-communist Russia, we still are able to see no sort of media freedom ; the Kremlins in Russia are in control of a big portion of the media market. President Vladimir Putin chose to utilize the media to acquire the society to back up him. The Kremlins have besides blocked private investors from come ining the media market therefore profiting from all advertisement money. The Russian authorities is therefore responsible for the media prejudice by taking what to be covered by the media houses and what non to be covered. Media prejudice besides still varies from state to state. Something referred to as media prejudice in the United Kingdom can be viewed to be really normal in America. This is because of the different theoretical accounts of media describing that exist. Libertarian media theoretical account is besides referred to as commercial and it is where the media is free to compose what they want. A socially responsible media theoretical account is another signifier and it is more inclined towards supplying information to the society doing them apt to some extent to the authorities. Authoritarian media theoretical account experiences entire authorities control ( Gehlbach and Konstantin, 2008 ) .
The three different theoretical accounts of describing hence present different scenarios to media prejudice to people of different nationalities. Media besides can be presented in three different domains. They are intelligence production, intelligence content and the intelligence audience. News production entails everything involved toward the attaining of the concluding intelligence end product. It includes radio intelligence, telecasting broadcasts, cyberspace, and newspapers. The 2nd media sphere is the intelligence content, which entails what, is really said on wireless or telecasting broadcasts, what is written on the newspapers and cyberspace walls. The 3rd domain is the intelligence audience, which refers to how people react when they hear something on the wireless ; watch intelligence on telecasting or even when they read documents. With those media domains and different types of media theoretical accounts in different states, we can easy cognize if so media bias exists in a specific state ( Oates, 2008 ) .
Literature reappraisal
As before stated, libertarian media theoretical account, which is besides referred to as commercial theoretical account, is where the media is free to compose what they want. Most of the south East Asia states have been considered for a long period to hold libertarian media theoretical accounts. That tendency or premiss nevertheless is easy stoping and these can be attributed to the several political every bit good as economic developments, which have occurred in the old old ages in that country. Political putschs in Indonesia, East Timor, and Philippines to the changeless protests by the ruddy ground forces in Thailand have threatened media freedom immensely. Governments in south East Asia have taken control of media houses, arrested journalists, and shut down many media related concerns.
The media in Philippines a few old ages back was strictly libertarian. However, at the minute, the Philippines have a mixture of libertarian and autocratic media theoretical accounts. Equally much as Philippines used to bask libertarian media theoretical account, it was non wholly free of authorities intervention. Given the continued attempted putschs in the sou’-east states, the Filipino authorities felt that their national security would be better protected if they had autocratic theoretical account to look into the media houses, for statements about authorities. In add-on, this would amount to tension among members of the public and therefore a state which was known to hold the freest media in south east Asia turned autocratic ( VOICEMASTER, Philippines, 2003 ) .
China another state in Asia where the 2008 Olympics were held besides got attending for the incorrect grounds after issues arose on cyberspace freedom. China had censored the usage of cyberspace service Google throughout the state and even Hillary Clinton, US secretary of province was at manus to reprobate that move. With the rapid turning economic system, the Chinese authorities saw it prudent to put media controls so that information about their economic advancement and future prosperity programs do non acquire easy into their rivals ownership. Chinese Torahs nevertheless vouch for media freedom but are non the existent state of affairs on the land ( Baldwin, Bhattacharji, and Zissis, 2010 ) .
On the other manus, another south East Asiatic state continues to do advancement towards a wholly free media system. Indonesia has a libertarian media model free of any sort of authorities intervention. This occurred after Suharto who was their leader died in the twelvemonth 1998. The figure of new newspapers, magazines, and wireless Stationss has increased drastically since so and even a new imperativeness jurisprudence enacted in 1999 to guarantee complete freedom of the media ( Limpattaamapanee n vitamin D ) .
Malaysia, which is another south East Asiatic state, has had really tight authorities control on the media. In the twelvemonth 2000 nevertheless, 1000 qualified journalists from within the state came together and signed a request. The request was addressed to the so place curate demanding that media freedom be nothingness of authorities intervention, which was at an all clip high so. Even though at some point the Malayan authorities looked to hold heeded the request, authorities control still is high because most of the media houses belong to companies, which are allied to the governing party.
The topic of our survey, which is the Thailand media, used to bask libertarian media theoretical account until the twelvemonth 2001 when Prime Minister Thaksin Sinawwattra took office and given he won with a landslide border over his rivals, inquiries were asked about the function the media played in the whole election. After he was sworn in, the authorities started seting tight controls on the media houses illicitly. Licenses for several media houses were withdrawn mentioning intervention with air traffic moving ridges and the lone operational media companies that survived the onslaught belonged to either the Royal Thai authorities or military. Even after Prime Minister Sinawwattra was removed from office through a putsch by the military junta, nil much was done to rectify the tendency. The current Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva who took over from the military junta has besides continued with the position quo in the state ‘s media system. The media prejudice in Thailand is nevertheless on wireless and telecasting merely. Newspapers in Thailand are non under close supervising and apart from ‘chiang mai ‘ ; all other documents are published in Bangkok where a big figure of paper readers are ( Assavanonda and Ashayagachat, 2007 ) . Internet is besides considered to be free as “ pantip.com ” one of Thailand ‘s largest cyberspace forums contains all issues both positive and negative about the authorities. Thailand can therefore be said to be basking both libertarian and autocratic media theoretical accounts even though autocratic is far much greater ( Assavanonda and Ashayagachat, 2007 ) .
It is so far obviously clear that it is about impossible for states to hold libertarian theoretical accounts entirely as their media theoretical accounts. Most states prefer to unite autocratic and libertarian to buffer them against what they refer to as national security concerns and award of their states and hence as more and more states seek to further media freedom, it is really improbable they will bask libertarian media theoretical accounts
Media freedom free of any authorities intervention is really of import. Journalists dream of working under such conditions that allows them to travel out, look for information, and publish stuffs without fright of being arrested or having decease menaces. Furthermore, the consumers of such information besides dream of times, when they will be able to vote during elections, after being fed with adequate information to assist them do informed determinations on who to vote for and who non to vote for. This is really possible since as the Electoral College, mis-representation by the authorities can do persons non to vote for the right individual who was on the other side of the divide.
As evidenced by the survey, media and authorities control is something that is impacting many states presently, and non merely Thailand. In order to achieve media freedom free of any sort of authorities intervention, we need proper statute laws to be passed by the authoritiess to vouch deficiency of that engagement by authorities. Journalists besides need to be good trained on ways of relaying sensitive information to the people because at times in- experient journalists are the ground authoritiess decide to fasten steps in the first topographic point. By making that we can once more be certain of a libertarian media theoretical account, which is the best by every criterion.